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Class 6A
No. 13 Kaneland (5-4) at No. 4 Belvidere North (8-1)
When: 7 p.m. Friday
About the Knights: The Knights started the season 4-0, including a pair of wins against teams that are 7-2 – Wauconda and Washington. But they’ve lost four of five, including to conference foes Rochelle, Sycamore and Morris by an average of 32 points. They lost 14-10 to Belleville Althoff, the No. 1 team in Class 1A, in Week 9. Three of the four teams they’ve lost to this year are at least 8-1. Carter Grabowski and Brady Alstott lead the team in tackles with 61 each. Grabowski had a pair of interactions and Alstott has one. Rogan O’Neil and Jake Buckley each have 10 tackles for loss. Grabowski leads the team with 613 rushing yards. Chase Kruckenberg has thrown for 1,365 yards and 14 touchdowns while being intercepted four times. The teams met in the first round of the 2015 playoffs in the Knights’ first year in 6A. Kaneland won 33-31.
About the Blue Thunder: The Blue Thunder’s only loss came to Hononegah 22-19 in Week 8, allowing the two teams to split the NIC-10 title. They held off third-place Harlem in Week 9 34-20. They feature a balanced ground game with four players at 400 or more rushing yards, with Ben Bucher (37-587-8) and Erick Roman (52-578-5) leading the way. The winner will face either No. 12 Fenton (6-3) or No. 5 Wauconda (7-2) in the second round.
Friday Night Drive pick: Kaneland
Class 5A
No. 16 Noble/Bulls (5-4) at No. 1 Sycamore (9-0)
When: 1 p.m. Saturday
About the Bulls: They’re in the playoffs for the third time in four years going one-and-done in a pair of other 5A appearances. They lost 45-0 to Carmel in 2022 and 41-4 to Glenbard South in 2021. They went 3-4 in the CPL Red but won nondivision games against Perspectives/Leadership (5-4) and Noble/UIC (2-7) as part of a 3-1 start to the season. They lost two of their past three games, the only win against Hyde Park (0-9), 34-8. The two losses were in Week 7 against Noble/Johnson (3-6), a 33-12 loss, and 35-0 to Kenwood (4-5), a 35-0 loss. They were outscored 195-172 this year. The winner gets No. 9 Westinghouse or No. 8 Prosser in the second round.
About the Spartans: Sycamore is making its sixth straight playoff appearance, advancing past the first round each time. The Spartans’ average margin of victory in the first round is 32.6 points per game and 37.3 against CPS schools in the past four postseasons. They finished their perfect regular season last week with a 52-14 win over Cahokia. The Spartans have passed for 1,491 yards this season behind quarterback Burke Guatcher, who has completed 66.1% of his attempts for 1,445 yards, 13 touchdowns and an interception. Carter York (27-447-2) and Aidan Wyzard (20-586-8) are the top two targets. Landon Egler leads the team with 67 tackles, including six for loss. Owen DePauw has six sacks. Caden O’Donnell has three interceptions while York leads with four.
FND pick: Sycamore
Class 3A
No. 14 Genoa-Kingston (5-4) at No. 3 Durand-Pecatonica (8-1)
When: 7 p.m. Friday
About the Cogs: The Cogs have now qualified for eight of the past nine postseasons after missing last year. They got in this year thanks to a 29-14 win against Rockford Lutheran last week, their only win against a playoff team this season, although they lost to Oregon and Stillman Valley by a combined five points. Nathan Kleba has run the offense for the Cogs at quarterback, with G-K throwing the ball more than in the past. Hayden Hodgson and Patrick Young have been frequent targets for the Cogs, who use a committee at running back while running the wing-T.
About the Rivermen: Durand and Pecatonica formed a co-op in 2017, and have now qualified for the playoffs for the past five postseasons. The Rivermen’s only blemish this year is a 46-22 loss to Lena-Winslow in Week 6. They’ve averaged 41.5 points per game. Cooper Hoffman is a dual-threat quarterback, having completed 69.6% of his passes for 1,752 yards, 20 touchdowns and four interceptions. He’s also rushed for 634 yards and 15 touchdowns. Dermot Dolan leads the team with 727 rushing yards. Jaxon Diedrich (43-749-10) and Brody Black (38-716-7) have been the main targets for Hoffman. The winner of this game faces either No. 11 Buckley-Loda (6-3) or No. 6 Monmouth-Roseville (8-1) in the second round.
FND pick: Du-Pec